Astral Express.
Everyone sat on the sofa.
Together, they focused on Yu Ling's preview livestream.
They thought they'd see March 7th's dazed expression the moment the livestream started, sitting there and greeting the players or something like that.
However.
No one expected!
It began with a bombshell!
Zero-frame start!
In just a few seconds,
"The Nameless Faces" begins with an overwhelmingly grand prelude, as if pulling everyone into the epic of a saga!
Among those present,
the most shocked is undoubtedly Old Yang!
Seeing the figure of this man, he immediately stands up!
The same gaze, the same hair color, the same appearance!
It's as if the words "I am Kevin" are written all over his face!
How could this be?
Isn't this the theme song of Amphoreus?
Why would Kevin appear here!
For a moment, Old Yang is utterly astonished!
Fortunately,
since the release of "Honkai: Star Rail," he has experienced quite a few "storms and waves."
He gently bites the tip of his tongue to calm himself down.
It must just be a coincidence.
Just like Seele and Bronya in Belobog.
He's scaring himself for no reason!
He continues watching.
A towering statue emerges amidst the clouds in the scene.
It is a colossal giant covered in golden patterns.
With hands outstretched, it carries a massive sphere on its back.
This should be a depiction of the world of Amphoreus.
At the same time,
the singing begins.
"Cycle..."
"Hope and despair alternate in song..."
An ethereal female voice resonates.
In the scene,
the figure of a woman appears.
Golden, ornate high heels step onto a carpet.
On either side, humanoid puppet-like creatures bow in welcome.
The woman arrives at a platform.
A golden fruit is raised high toward the sky.
Her full appearance is now revealed in the scene.
...
"Wow!"
"Who is this?!"
"This is my new master!"
"Her outfit feels a bit like Himeko's. Could they be related?"
"Magnificent!"
"The moment her voice started, I got goosebumps all over!"
"Thank you, I feel like I've already traveled to Amphoreus."
...
After seeing this woman appear, Old Yang can't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
See, just as expected.
How could Amphoreus be filled with old acquaintances everywhere!
It's just a coincidental figure resembling Kevin. No need to make a fuss.
Look closely.
Across different scenes, it seems to be the small pink creature, the little one called Mem, that weaves through and connects them.
Now,
the second character of Amphoreus appears!
No,
to be precise,
it's the second, third, and fourth characters!
Because these three little girls with red hair look almost identical.
Lively and adorable,
they are preparing gifts.
But a tail rather mischievously swipes a few gold coins.
The owner of the tail is a girl.
However, the cat tail from earlier proves she is no ordinary human girl.
Instead, she must have a deep connection with "cats."
...
"This cat girl is so cute!"
"Whose child is she?"
"These three little girls are adorable too!"
"I can't wait to go to Amphoreus!"
"Red hair? Could they be Himeko's daughters?"
"Not sure, let's keep watching!"
...
"Rise and fall, memories linger as echoes of the end."
Along with the song,
a green-haired adult man and a pink-haired girl flash by.
The scene shifts.
Inside a dimly lit castle.
Beside burning pillars of fire.
On a throne carved from red crystal, a man with a bare upper body lounges lazily.
One hand rests against his head, while the other raises a red wine glass.
As if celebrating victory.
A faint, elusive smile plays at the corner of his lips.
With a close-up shot, one could see his body covered in blood-red patterns.
His gaze was sharp and piercing, carrying an intimidating aura that made one hesitant to meet his eyes.
...
"Bro, who are you!?"
"He's so cool, I'm pulling for him!"
"He has a kind of exaggeratedly powerful beauty!"
"Raise the cup of victory, the next stop must be triumph!"
"Within three minutes, I need to know this man's name!"
"Ahhhhh Yu Ling, you can't keep doing this, are you trying to ruin us Star Rail players!"
...
A shattered palace.
Scattering flower petals.
At this moment,
what appeared before all the players was a woman with her eyes closed.
On her left arm was a purple butterfly ornament.
She was in an embracing posture.
Yet what she held in her arms was continuously fading and breaking apart.
The girl knelt in the palace.
For just a moment, yet it felt like an eternity.
...
"There's still more?"
"Seele!"
"Seele, is that you?"
"Congratulations to Seele for getting buffed!"
"This girl seems to have lost something or someone very important, there's an indescribable sadness."
"Healthy, sunny, positive and uplifting!"
...
"Forgetting..."
"The future and past turn to ashes."
The song's rhythm suddenly became rapid and intense!
The visuals flashed through several frames in quick succession!
There was a scene of a great sword suspended above a city.
A green-haired man confronting a crowd.
A cat-tailed girl amidst a sea of flames.
And...
The Astral Express crashing into a mountain range.
Though brief and fast, all the prepared players managed to capture it!
...
"Honkai!"
"Holy crap what did I see? The train is out of control!"
"Pom-Pom: Turn around immediately! Get away from Amphoreus!"
"Yu Ling, you didn't really think you could hide the knives in these few frames and we wouldn't notice, did you? You can't possibly be that naive, can you? Haki Yu!"
"This really is becoming Honkai: Star Rail now."
"We're done for!"
"You're not even pretending anymore!"
...
The players were still marveling one by one.
The next moment,
the visual composition had become art!
The divine faces and relaxed postures of the heroes resembled church frescoes.
The characters that had appeared in previous scenes were scattered on both sides, all pursuing the same goal in the center.
This scene.
Who knows how many players took screenshots of it!
Aside from its beauty, it undoubtedly contained significant information!
The Astral Express Crew was no exception.
They extracted this screenshot, immediately zooming in on the central details.
Himeko carefully observed the changes in the image.
She spoke up:
"The central sky shows the alternation of day and night, sun and moon, due to changes in the guiding lines..."
"Then it all goes up in flames."
"This should correspond to the lyrics here:"
"The future and past turn to ashes."
...
"This scene is so divine, it feels like a fresco!"
"There's a Trailblazer mixed in at the bottom right."
"This would make such an awesome wallpaper!"
"Wow this shot has such a strong vibe!"
"Guess how many in this picture will survive?"
"Left side dead, right side injured."
"Why are the three red-haired little girls separated! (scared"
...
Before the players' exclamations could end.
The next lyric seemed to foreshadow an even more tragic future!
"All buried with the new life..."
Along with this lyric.
In the visuals,
all the heroes that had appeared before seemed defeated and exhausted!
Some lay fallen in ruins, others pierced by spears.
Only Stelle remained staggering.
Struggling to rise amidst the ruins.
Mem flutters to her side.
Transforms into a quill pen.
Stelle grips the nib,
her gaze resolute,
swinging with all her might!
"Fate has exiled me,"
"So what..."
"Does it matter—!"